Argentina complete stunning comeback to reach the quarter - finals

Argentina and Egypt produced a Round of 16 thriller at the 2026 World Cup. The reigning champions fought back to secure a 3-2 victory over the African side and advance to the quarter-finals, where they will meet the winner of Switzerland vs. Colombia. Lautaro Martinez was one of the standout figures in the win, coming on in the 66th minute and immediately making an impact.

Argentina secured an incredible win at the Atlanta Stadium in Georgia, completing a comeback that seemeed impossible. Egypt were well organised and took the lead in the 15th minute through defender Ibrahim, who headed home to put them ahead. The game quickly became an uphill battle for La Albiceleste, but they had the perfect chance to equalise in the 21st minute after Taglifico was brought down inside the box. However, just as against Austria, Leo Messi was denied from the spot, with the goalkeeper Shobeir producing a brilliant save. The Egyptian goalkeeper became one of the standout performers of the match, making two more excellent stops to deny Mac Allister and Julian Alvarez and keeping the score 1-0 at half-time. In the second half, Argentina looked to be heading towards elimination when Ziko scored on the counter in the 58th minute. The goal, however, was ruled out by VAR for a previous foul on Lisandro Martinez. The World Champions seemed to be on the brink of defeat again in the 67' when Ziko scored his second goal of the night following another lightning-counter to make it 2-0. A minute earlier, Lionel Scaloni had brought on Lautaro Martinez for Rodrigo De Paul, hoping to turn the game around which seemed daunting after Egypt's second goal. But Argentina did not give up. In the 79th minute, Messi produced a sublime cross for Romero, who beat Shobeir with a powerful header to bring Argentina back into the game. Lautaro occupied the box, tried a couple of efforts that narrowly missed the target, but his presence immediately added energy to Argentina’s attack. Then, in the 83rd minute, El Toro made the difference. Lautaro redirected Messi’s cross with a clever acrobatic touch towards the centre, where Alvarez was unable to control the ball. Messi reacted quickest, charging onto the loose ball and firing home to make it 2-2. The decisive moment came in the 92nd minute. Julian Alvarez played Lautaro through, and the Inter captain raced forward from halfway before calmly assessing his options. He looked into the box, waited for a teammate to arrive, and spotted Enzo Fernandez making a brilliant run. Lautaro delivered the perfect cross, and Enzo headed home to send Argentina and their supporters into wild celebrations. The scoreline remained unchanged: 3-2 to Argentina. It was another dramatic comeback for the World Champions, who secured their place in the quarter-finals and kept their dream of retaining the title alive.